Adil Najam
[UPDATE: Unfortunately the story of Gulab Singh has not been a pleasant one since the great start that this post originally reported on. Current, and still evolving details, here.]
A few days ago a reader sent me a link to a BBC story about Dr. Gulab Singh Shaheen who has been inducted into the Pakistan Punjab traffic police and has become a celebrity on the roads of Lahore where he is quite literally stopping the traffic as Lahoris stop to embrace and greet him.
I felt real good about the continuation of this trend towards reintegrating minority communities who have been systematically sidelined in the past, and even more about the wonderful reception Lahore is giving to Sub-Inspector Gulab Singh. And, of course, my fascination with traffic cops is well known to ATP readers (here, here, here, here, and elsewhere).
However, I hesitated because I wanted an on the ground confirmation. That came today from the Lahore Metroblog (yes, in general, I have more respect for the three Pakistani Metroblogs than for BBC!).
(By the way, I am intrigued by the fact that he is a homeopathic doctor since we had earlier carried another post and video report on the Khalsa Dawakhana and Hakim Sarbir Singh; of course, Sikhs have a long history in what is now Pakistan - here and here - but I wonder whether and why this community has a particular focus on traditional medicine studies).
It turns out, in fact, that Daily Times had a wonderful story on him last week which I had missed earlier. Here is what it said:
“Since yesterday, I have been hearing different greetings, such as sat sari kaal, jo bolay so nihal and ballay ballay from car and bus drivers, motorcyclists and children. Lahoris are really very loving people and these are unforgettable moments for me,” remarked Dr Gulab Singh, the first-ever Sikh to be appointed traffic police warden in Pakistan, in an exclusive interview with Daily Times.
Gulab, the 25-year-old Sikh traffic warden, who hails from Nankana Sahib and now lives in Defence Housing Authority, said that joining the force as a sub-inspector was a dream come true for him. Pledging to do his duty wholeheartedly, he said that the loving welcome he had received from the public had added to his joy. He said he had joined his duty station on Wednesday, and by the second day, dozens of children had forced their parents to stop the car so that they could meet him. Singh is deputed on Alif Laam Meem Chowk on Aziz Bhatti Road in Cantt.
Gulab said he was born in Nankana district in January 1982. His father, Manna Singh, is a farmer and a father of seven - five boys and two girls. Gulab is the youngest of the siblings. Gulab completed his matriculation in Nankana district, graudation in Lahore and then received a doctorate in homeopathy from Bahawalpur. Gulab said he also operated a homeopathic clinic, which he might have to shut down because of his new and demanding posting.
Gulab said he applied for the sub-inspector post when announcements inviting applications appeared in newspapers, but did not tell his family. He informed them only after he was appointed, which translated into a delightful surprise for them, he added. Commenting on his training process, Gulab said, “The attitude of my fellow trainees and officers was very good towards me. Nobody ever forced me to do anything against my religious beliefs.” He said he had no problems wearing his kara (bangle), or keeping his kirpan (dagger) on him. He added that, as he was a vegetarian, green meals were arranged for him in the mess during the training period. “I am very grateful to my officers for this gesture,” Gulab said.
Gulab is multilingual and has command over Urdu, Punjabi, Pashto, Seraiki, and Sindhi. He added, “I can also speak English, but not very fluently.” Gulab also said that he was fond of Punjabi bhangra music and that his favourite singers are Abrar-ul-Haq, Harbajhan Maan and Waris Baig. In terms of the future, Gulab said, “I will do my duty honestly, work like a true and dutiful citizen, and dream of a corruption-free atmosphere.”
I second Pervaiz Munir Alvi again.
Umar Khan, Im sorry to hear about your dad’s demise. Again, let me make my point clear.
What I was and still trying to know, is there an ideal place in the world where you think everything is perfect? my answer is NO, and I hope your answer will be the same too. There are issues everywhere, some have more some have less, so why to blame Pakistan for everything? still hundred and thousands of minority groups and communities are living in Pakistan with peace and actively taking part in everyday life. Whatever has happened to you or to anyone else is terrible and is not appreciated in any manner but you cannot generalize a few isolated cases to blame the whole nation.
Lastly, if anyone abuses or insults Pakistan for no reasons, don’t expect that you’ll get a red carpet treatment.
Mohan Preetnam wrote:
also kinda hard to forget that at the time of partition in 1947, the western wing of Pakistan had a non-Muslim population of 15% (the percentage in the eastern half was much larger). Today, it is, what, 3 percent or so? Where did all those people go?
This isn’t true. See here. The proportion of non-Muslims in West Pakistan was 3.56% in 1951, and 3.48% in 1948. (To maintain comparibility, both figures exclude Ahmedis.).
The incorrect data Mohan Preetnam cites confuses United Pakistan on 1951 (including Bangladesh) with West Pakistan.
I hope that clarifies things.
Ah, Pervaiz……
In some ways I kinda sorta agree with the spirit of what you are saying…we had a Hindu in my class at school once (the only one, ever, I might add), he was a nice middle class kid that had friends, never got singled out as far as I could see…my experience with Christians has been that they are pretty much in the sweeper class but I never saw that anybody was out to “get” them….BUT…..knowing what we do from newspapers/media/general attitudes:
If there is a “worse” country for religious minorities…
where is it?
Just curious.
OK Nasir, you win the argument. One hundred fifty five million Muslims in Pakistan get up every morning thinking how many Hindus, Sikhs, Christians and Parsis they could kill that day. And individual incidents could be used to malign the whole nation for wrong doing. And international or national organizations in this regard have no political agenda. Cherry picking must be fun for you. Whoever said that Pakistani society was a Utopia. But it is not a Hell like some would like to portray. Are the conditions for the religious minorities in Pakistan ideal and perfect. The answer is NO. Is Pakistan a worst place for the religious minorities on the earth. The answer is again NO. I have made my point and are going to move on. You may continue as you please. Thanks for the participation.
http://www.thepersecution.org/nr/2006/y2006.html
and b4 the website is blamed of being a propagandanda machine, may i suggest the readers to pay attention to every single statistic/news being backed up by some of pakistan’s most well respected newspapers.
i hereby rest my case.
As for the jailing bit, yes i spent a day in the lockup when Mardan’s mosque was demolished on Eid-ul-Fitr during Zia’s tenure.
As for my dad, may Allah bless his soul, he was a pious man, a retired major who fought 2 wars for pakistan but his only mistake was he was a proud and brave Ahmadi who wasnt scare of the mullas’ taunts.
Tina: Thanks for the encouragement. I admire the clarity of your views and your persistence in battling off the propaganda by the obscurantist.
Omar: Quite tempting but time and my employment with a government department (i.e., potential or perceived conflict of interests and views) stop me from jumping into the field of journalism.
jayjay — you should write for newspapers